Gay Campaign Manager Sabotaged w/ Underwear Clad Craigslist Sex Ad

Mayoral candidate Roman "Tiger" Abeyta got quite the shock when an email was sent to the media featuring his openly gay campaign manager Ray Sandoval allegedly soliciting sex on Craigslist in his underwear.

Ray Sandoval, Abeyta’s campaign manager, acknowledged that it’s him in the photograph, but he denied ever placing such an ad. The email came to his attention after it was sent to the board of the Kiwanis Club. The club puts on the annual burning of Zozobra, an event Sandoval organized with much fanfare this year.

The email “ties in Zozobra and Roman’s campaign. This is clearly political,” Sandoval said in an interview at Abeyta’s headquarters Monday night.

Sandoval said he immediately reported the ad to Craigslist, which removed it, and then he filed a police report to try to track the sender.

“I’ve seen them attacking the candidate. But now you’re going to start attacking the campaign manager? This is an absolute new low,” he said.

Several of Abeyta’s opponents in the mayoral race denied any involvement in the ad and email.

The email came from someone named “Sean Gallegos.”

Sandoval explains that he and his ex-boyfriend took the photograph two years ago and posted it on Facebook to show their progress during a new exercise program. “Do I regret it now? Absolutely,” Sandoval says.

He continues, “I think what the intent here is to go to the Kiwanis board and put pressure on me to get out of this race, to stop helping Roman, because then my board members are going to come back and say, ‘Look, Kiwanis does all these good things for kids. We can’t have somebody out there who is soliciting for sex on this sex site, and you need to now step down from Roman’s campaign.’ I think that’s exactly what the intention was."

At this point mayoral candidate Abeyta has not asked Sandoval to resign.

Dirty politics. What do you think of the way this has played out, Instincters?

Wow. beyond messed up. I have known this man for 7 years. He is my ex and I know he for sure wouldn't post anything like this. What a low low blow to him and their campaign. I hope this SOB Sean gets locked up. What a low-class thing to do to someone just because they're different. And btw Ray looks amazing! Just FYI (; XO! -G